Vance Joseph outlines current priorities as head coach

Why is football Vance Joseph's third priority right now?

Vance Joseph’s third priority right now is football, but that shouldn’t concern Broncos fans.

As Denver’s new head coach told KOA News Radio on Tuesday afternoon, his first and second priorities lie with the managerial responsibilities that accompany a head-coaching gig.

“My first thing is [finding] what kind of players can we acquire to help our team get better,” Joseph said. “That’s always the first priority each morning coming into work. My second priority is probably scheduling for training camp and mini camps and all those things. And my third, is football. That’s the order of business. It’s pretty standard in the NFL.”

Joseph’s list doesn’t end there. Since he was announced as head coach on Jan. 12, he’s buried himself in film study of the Broncos’ 2016-17 season.

“I’ve watched most of the offensive tape the last couple weeks,” Joseph said. “It’s been fun to watch. Defensively, I’ve kind of watched a little bit, but I’m really familiar being with [former defensive coordinator] Wade [Phillips] and watching those guys play over the years. The offensive side, that’s where I spend most of my time as far as film study.”

“I saw a unit that moved the ball,” Joseph said. “It had no problem moving the ball. It had some problems in the red zone scoring touchdowns, and that was a big issue. As far as execution, as far as guys playing hard, as far as throwing and catching the football, I didn’t see any problems there. It’s going to be an easy fix for us, in my opinion, to score more points. It’s not totally broken.”

If Joseph is to solve some of the issues that plagued Denver’s offense in 2016, he’ll need to see improvement from the offensive line. He told KOA on Tuesday he saw a left tackle in Russell Okung who “can really play,” as well as strong pieces in Max Garcia and Matt Paradis.

“As a group, it was a solid group,” Joseph said. “It wasn’t as bad as you thought it would be as you watched the tape. But you can always better. Our goal in the offseason is always to find better players to improve our entire offense.”

That work will continue for Joseph through the Combine, Draft and up until OTAs begin. In the meantime, he said won’t have much time for golf — which he enjoys — and skiing, which his wife likes. Instead, his free time will fill up with volleyball and baseball practice as his kids adjust to Colorado, as well.

“My kids are growing up now,” Joseph said. “They’re playing sports. So outside of football, I’m being a dad.”